“We don’t have the state titles that Le-Win and Dakota have,” tight end/defensive end Skylar Paulson said. “If we win a state title, people will respect us more — like Lena.”

“We are held accountable,” coach Randy Asche said, “to the standard that teams like Lena, Dakota and Aquin have set, If you don’t come home with that trophy, then you didn’t quite reach what they have reached.

“But we’ve won back-to-back conference championships. That doesn’t happen every day with Le-Win and Dakota and Forreston in the conference.”

Asche notes that Dakota’s Jerry Lano didn’t win the first of his three titles until his 17th year at Dakota while Le-Win’s title came in Ric Arand’s 14th year as coach.

“One of these years, we’re going to make the next step,” Asche said, “and raise the bar.”

Maybe this year. E/PC is 9-0 for the third time in team history.

The Wildcatz are winning even more now than when they went 43-11 from 2000-04 with a high-octane four- and five-wide receiver offense featuring quarterbacks Kam and Kyle Kniss. Kam Kniss, who had 429 yards and eight passing and running TDs in that historic loss to Aquin, would go on to pass for 10.226 yards and set 12 school record at North Central College.

E/PC players still hear about those teams.

“Our chemistry teacher showed us the highlight film,” Paulson said.

“People say they are the greatest E/PC team that ever played and ever will,” cornerback Mike Harrington said, “but we’re hoping to make a statement that we’re the best.”

This team is nothing like those teams. Randy Asche made sure of that.

“My first year, of the 32 playoff teams, we were ranked 28th on defense,” Asche said. “I don’t want to be that. On nights when its raining or the wind is blowing, you can’t always rely on passing, but you can always rely on your defense.

“I wanted to be more physical, and it can’t be done on just one side. We have people playing both ways, so we took a physical approach to everything we did, special teams, defense and offense.”

So out went the spread offense.

“It didn’t go over good,” Asche said. “I lost some friends over it. I lost some coaches. Not everyone agreed with it, but it was the best way I could coach the kids.

“We didn’t have all the pieces to make it work. Kam and Kyle aren’t here anymore. Those two guys were incredible, but how often do guys like that come through a small school? They don’t just pop up. And I can’t coach a quarterback like that. I’m old in what I know and how I think football should be played.”

With an 18-1 record the last two years, and 42-10 the last five, Asche, a former Loras College safety, could pound his chest and say history has proven him right to rely on defense and running.

He hasn’t. And he won’t. Not until Eastland/Pearl City makes a Le-Win- or Dakota-like playoff run.

“You always question yourself,” Asche said. “Why aren’t we getting further? Was this the right decision or the wrong decision?”

The players think the decision was right.

Eric Shaney (1,007 yards) and Donny Groezinger (725) average 10 yards a carry and lead a punishing ground attack for a team that loves to be physical.

“If we don’t out-physical teams, we don’t think we’ve won anything,” two-way starter Truckenmiller said. “If you are not physical in this conference, you won’t go anywhere.”

But it’s hard to go anywhere in Class 2A without also being able to pass. These Wildcatz have a very efficient, although only slightly used, passing game. Deven Heeren is 55-for-81 for 828 yards on the season, with 15 TD passes and only two interceptions. That works out to a 130.6 NFL-style passer rating. In the only three games E/PC won by fewer than 30 points, Heeren topped 100 yards each time.

The Wildcatz will need that type of passing to get beyond the second round of the playoffs for only the second time in school history. Dakota won two of its three recent state titles in Class 2A and Stockton won a 2A title 35 years ago, but all the other NUIC titles were in 1A. E/PC is always in 2A.

In the last five years, E/PC has twice lost to eventual state champ Morrison in the second round and a third time to Morrison when the Mustangs narrowly lost to state champ and Big Rivers rival Sterling Newman in the third round. In all five of those years, E/PC was scheduled to run into the eventual state champ in one of the first three rounds.

“Every year, it seems like the second or third round is the state championship between the Big Rivers and the NUIC,” defensive back Harrington said.

If the Wildcatz, tied for second in the final Class 2A poll, beat Chicago Luther North (5-4) at 1 p.m. Saturday, they’ll likely face the Big Rivers again with No. 4 Sterling Newman (8-1) next week.

Fine. The Wildcatz are ready for the challenge.

“Everyone is underestimating us because of the previous years,” two-way lineman Austin Fischer said. “We haven’t showed much in the playoffs, but this year we have the chance and the drive to go far.”

“People keep saying that we play 1A competition and are going to go out early again in 2A,” Skylar Paulson said. “You get tired of it. We want to show people what we can do in the 2A playoffs.”